Thousands of Horses Abandoned in Ireland
The Daily Mail reports that thousands of horses—perhaps as many as one hundred thousand—are being abandoned in Ireland as a result of the financial crisis there. Many are brought by their owners to common grazing grounds, such as Dunsink tip near Dublin, and left to fend for themselves. Some too weak to survive have had […]
Horsey Book Wins National Book Award
Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon won the National Book Award for Fiction last month. The book’s title is taken from the name of a horse at a seedy, fictional racetrack in West Virginia. As a novelist, Jaimy Gordon has been championed by a few during her years of obscurity, and was, as the New York […]
UK Huntsman First to Garner Two Convictions Under the Hunting Act
Huntsman Richard Down of the Quantock Hills staghounds has been convicted for a second time under the Hunting Act. He was convicted for hunting a wild mammal with more than two dogs. Down had three. Down’s first conviction was in 2007 when he was found guilty of chasing deer with hounds. In the five years […]
Right-to-Hunt Prop 109 Defeated in Arizona
The ballot measure to make hunting a constitutional right was defeated by Arizona voters. Poor communication among pro-hunting groups, confusing language in the legislation, and large expenditures by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) opposing the bill were cited as reasons for the measure’s defeat. A single cash donation by HSUS of $250,000 […]
Imminent Repeal of Britain’s Hunting Ban Is Doubtful
Notwithstanding the Prime Minister’s promise of a free vote in Parliament on the repeal of the Hunting Bill, the issue has been eclipsed by the more pressing problems of the British economy. Despite Countryside Alliance head Alice Barnard’s recent statements urging that Prime Minister David Cameron “right a great wrong” by overturning the ban, the […]
Student Suspended for Riding Horse to School in Myopia Country
Were he alive today, famous cavalry officer General George Patton would be appalled that a high school student in his old home town could be suspended for riding a horse to school. Hamilton-Wenham High School is, after all, in General Patton’s old hunting country, home to the Myopia Hunt since 1882. High school senior Dan […]
Irish Foxhunters Secure Concessions
Irish foxhunters, shattered by legislation earlier this year banning the 154-year-old Ward Union Staghounds, have been holding their collective breath for the next shoe to fall. The Green Party, instrumental in the staghound ban, were pushing additional legislation that would require all dog breeding establishments with five or more breeding bitches to be licensed and […]
Davenport to Horses: Don’t Poop on My Parade
Horses will be required to wear diapers in order to march in the Halloween Parade in Davenport, Iowa this year. “Even though horses have long been staged at the rear of the parade, their droppings sometimes become a mine hazard to those leaving the parade route afterward,” says the Quad City Times. According to the […]
Alice Barnard: New Head of Countryside Alliance
Alice Barnard, 33, has taken over the reins of Britain’s Countryside Alliance. She is not only the first woman to lead the organization that boasts a membership of 100,000, but the youngest to do so. In a recent interview, Barnard urged Prime Minister Cameron to make good on his promise to hold a free vote […]
Eastern Coyote Is Part Wolf
The secret of the Eastern coyote was revealed just this year when scientists discovered wolf DNA in coyotes living in the U.S. Northeast. The scientists hypothesize that the Western coyotes mated with wolves as they migrated eastward north of the Great Lakes across Canada during the last century. The finding helps to explain why the […]